Abstract
The influence on adjacent ditch-bank vegetation of not spraying crop edges with pesticides was investigated in the Netherlands. To this end, the outer 3–6 m of winter wheat, sugar beet and potato fields were left unsprayed with herbicides and insecticides. The presence and abundance of plant species in adjacent ditch-bank vegetation were compared along sprayed and unsprayed crop edges in the same fields. Only along the unsprayed winter wheat crop did the diversity and cover of dicotyledons increase, as did the floristic value of the vegetation. A lot of species were only found on the ditch banks next to the unsprayed cereal edges, such as Ranunculus repens, Thlaspi arvense, Rumex crispus and Papaver rhoeas. Along this crop no effect was found on monocotyledons. No significant effects were found in the ditch-bank vegetation adjacent to the sugar beet or potato crop. This difference in effect on ditch-bank vegetation among the crops can be explained by differences in the spraying method, herbicides used and dosages employed.
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